Ch.Leoville Poyferre 1999 1500ml

Other Publications #0709 by Neal Martin
Tasted at the 1999 horizontal at Bordeaux Index. One of my favourite ?9s, this has a very lifted, well-defined nose that eschews the more opulent bouquet that Didier sometimes conjures. Blackberry, cedar, raspberry leaf, pencil shavings. The palate is medium-bodied, not quite as ebullient as the bottle in Bordeaux last year, but it has great vivacity and purity towards the finish. Sappy blackberry, boysenberry and strawberry with a touch of Asian spice. Excellent. Drink now-2025. Tasted June 2009.

During the French Revolution, Marquis de Las Cases Beauvoir was forced to flee France and as a consequence the Leoville estate was broken up. This gave birth to the 3 separate Chateaux Leoville Barton, Leoville Las Cases and Leoville Poyferre.

Léoville Poyferré, a 2ème Cru Classé, has been owned by the Cuvelier family since 1921, yet it was not until the 1970s, when Didier Cuvelier took control at the château, that quality began to improve. In the last 20 years, Didier, with the assistance of Michel Rolland since 1995, has turned Léoville-Poyferré into one of St-Julien's finest estates.

Léoville Poyferré has 80 hectares of vineyards planted with Cabernet Sauvignon (65%), Merlot (25%), Petit Verdot (8%) and Cabernet Franc (2%). Léoville Poyferré traditionally produced the softest and most supple wine of the 3 Léovilles, yet in the last decade the wines have definitely put on weight and body. This is largely due to the grapes being harvested riper and later and because of the increased exposure to new oak in the maturation process.

Meats, Beef and Venison